Review: The T by Three Masters of the Cigar Blending Art

Robert Caldwell, A. J. Fernandez, Matt Booth: Three well recognized names in our favorite industry. This is their second release together, this one produced at the Fernandez factory in Nicaragua. The cigar was to be named “The Truth” but Tatuaje seems to own that name. Really? You can own the word “Truth”?

I’ve been over a half dozen other reviews of this stick and the principals are not revealing much about the blend except that it is Nicaraguan puro.

Wrapper: Ecuador Habano (grown in Nicaragua)
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua

There are five different vitolas, all box pressed. The one I’m smoking is the Lonsdale, 6.5″ x 44.

Cold Aroma: Black tea, manure, barnyard are the aromas I get, especially the tea. Some other reviews have been all over the place with this.

Pre-light construction: Dark brown wrapper, slightly toothy. No veins, almost invisible seams. Box pressed, firm, no soft or hard spots. Looks fabulous.
Draw: Just about a perfect medium here that stays consistent throughout the smoke.

I have seen this cigar reviewed everywhere and everyone loves it. Alas is too expensive for me usually $12/stick at the box level. So when Cigars & Pipes recently had a fire sale and I saw these for $8.50/stick (still a full $2 above my present budget cap) I had to grab a box. Might be the only box I ever have, but I am glad I went for it.

When you light this up you get a little pepper that rapidly dials back and stays in the background. I get sweet wood, nuts, coffee, and lots of leather in the flavors, even sometimes a hint of fruit in the retrohale! Smoke output is great, and the cigar wants to smoke slowly. What strikes me most though is the cigar’s smoothness. All the flavors come out as a marvelous sweet meld. I cannot think of its like in any other cigar except maybe the 1924 Anniversary Padron, a cigar I have not smoked now in a few years as their price just went too high. Back to the T, as the cigar smokes down it gets a little less sweet while pepper and barn yard flavors come forward. The burn line stays straight throughout. This is a very well constructed cigar!

Flavors here are so well blended that none of them come out and really strike you, instead shifting back and forth with every puff. And this is a kick ass cigar, very full strength, or perhaps it is just the length of the stick. I’ve been through four of them now. The first two made me dizzy. I tried to let one go at the 3″ mark and come back to it, but even after a few hours when I pick it up the pepper comes way up and the other flavors have disappeared. I have to smoke this stick very slowly. Total smoke time ends up being about 90 minutes!

The ash does not hold very long, dropping at about 1/2″ but that might have something to do with how slowly I am able to smoke it. This is truly a cigar to savor. The subtle flavors here seem to go best with a subtle rum. The 40% ABV Real McCoy pictured is perfect. I reviewed this rum’s stronger brother a while back before I tasted this version. Turns out they are exactly the same rum (I believe) with this one watered down to the 40% level while the more limited edition version stands at 47%.

Over all, a great stick from three great masters of the cigar blending art. Given today’s cigar prices these are worth their $12/stick sticker even if I can’t afford them. If you find them at any price substantially under that, don’t miss out!